Top 5 National Parks

[blackbones]

LIST YOUR TOP 5 NATIONAL PARKS... National Monuments would work also..

#1 CANYONLANDS (needles district)

#2 ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

#3 YELLOWSTONE

#4 ARCHES

#5 ZION

 

[LuteHawk]

1. Yellowstone................1 Visit
2. Rocky Mountain.......5 Visits
3. Grand Canyon...........2 Visits
4. Grand Tetons............1 Visit
5. Saguaro......................2 Visits

 

[noleclone2]

For the ones I have been to:

1) Glacier
2) Yellowstone
3) Grand Tetons
4) Rocky Mountains
5) Dry Tortugas

Glacier is defiantly number 1 on a lot of lists and it was for me. Very unique place and massive eye candy and incredible hikes.

 

[blackbones]

For the ones I have been to:

1) Glacier
2) Yellowstone
3) Grand Tetons
4) Rocky Mountains
5) Dry Tortugas

Glacier is defiantly number 1 on a lot of lists and it was for me. Very unique place and massive eye candy and incredible hikes.

I'm pretty sure once I visit Glacier it'll be in my top 5...

 

[hawkeyetraveler]

I think I’ve only been to 10 of the US parks, so of the ones I have been would probably rank them:

1. Glacier
2. Rocky Mountain
3. Yellowstone
4. Haleakala
5. Great Smoky Mountains

If we expand internationally then I would amend my rankings to be:

1. Torres del Paine (Chile)
2. Banff (Canada)
3. Glacier
4. Glaciares (Argentina)
5. Rocky Mountain

I am super excited to do my first backcountry hiking trip into the Grand Canyon next week…so I’ll probably be amending the above list after that adventure.

 

[blackbones]

I think I’ve only been to 10 of the US parks, so of the ones I have been would probably rank them:

1. Glacier
2. Rocky Mountain
3. Yellowstone
4. Haleakala
5. Great Smoky Mountains

If we expand internationally then I would amend my rankings to be:

1. Torres del Paine (Chile)
2. Banff (Canada)
3. Glacier
4. Glaciares (Argentina)
5. Rocky Mountain

I am super excited to do my first backcountry hiking trip into the Grand Canyon next week…so I’ll probably be amending the above list after that adventure.

I've only seen the Grand Canyon from the rim but would love to hike down into it... Much like Bryce Canyon if you don't hike down into it your really missing out on ALOT of the beauty..

 

[InsaneHawkJJP]

1. Arches
2. Yosemite
3. Yellowstone
4. Sequoia
5. Mesa Verde

 

[hawkeyetraveler]

I've only seen the Grand Canyon from the rim but would love to hike down into it... Much like Bryce Canyon if you don't hike down into it your really missing out on ALOT of the beauty..

Same. It is stunning from the rim, but I wouldn’t rank it that high on my list compared to the other parks where I have done pretty extensive hikes.

I’m going to attempt the rim to rim to rim hike over a few days next week and I’m guessing my opinion will change.

 

[blackbones]

Same. It is stunning from the rim, but I wouldn’t rank it that high on my list compared to the other parks where I have done pretty extensive hikes.

I’m going to attempt the rim to rim to rim hike over a few days next week and I’m guessing my opinion will change.

Everything I've seen online for that hike is extremely highly rated...

 

[JRHawk2003]

My personal from my visits:

Glacier
Yellowstone
Arches
Joshua Tree
Acadia

 

[sunwarrior]

Olympic
Channel Islands
Arches
Smokey Mountains
Acadia

 

[goldmom]

1. Yellowstone
2. Rocky Mountain
3. Grand Canyon
4. Grand Tetons
5. Saguaro

I like this one but would replace your #5 with Zion or Great Smoky Mountain, which BTW is the most visited NP in America. Shenandoah is also wonderful.
To me Utah is one big NP. Amazing scenery.
My parents took us to NP’s, state parks, historic sites and museums all the time when we were growing up and it made the four of us lifelong fans of the special beauty of the USA. We all did the same with our kids.

 

[goldmom]

For the ones I have been to:

1) Glacier
2) Yellowstone
3) Grand Tetons
4) Rocky Mountains
5) Dry Tortugas

Glacier is defiantly number 1 on a lot of lists and it was for me. Very unique place and massive eye candy and incredible hikes.

My good friends did Glacier three years ago and they moved it to their #1. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.

 

[lucas80]

I'm pretty sure once I visit Glacier it'll be in my top 5...

Hurry, the glaciers are retreating rapidly. I've been there twice. It's magnificent, but part of the draw is the lakes and streams fed by the glaciers.

 

[WadeLookingbill]

Yosemite
RMNP
Glacier
Zion
Crater Lake or Redwoods

 

[lucas80]

1. Yellowstone
2. Rocky Mountain
3. Grand Canyon
4. Grand Tetons
5. Saguaro

I'll be in Saguaro in about a week. But, as mentioned, East or West? I'm thinking West since we only have a few days and we'll only have time for one side of the park.

 

[lucas80]

I've only seen the Grand Canyon from the rim but would love to hike down into it... Much like Bryce Canyon if you don't hike down into it your really missing out on ALOT of the beauty..

Either this Fall, or next Spring we are going to go to Utah and hit Bryce and Zion, with a day trip to the North Rim. At best we'll be. able to walk around the North Rim for a bit, and down a trail for a bit.

 

[Colonoscopy]

LIST YOUR TOP 5 NATIONAL PARKS... National Monuments would work also..

#1 CANYONLANDS (needles district)

#2 ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

#3 YELLOWSTONE

#4 ARCHES

#5 ZION

Did you hike needles district or just visit?

 

[JRHawk2003]

Everything I've seen online for that hike is extremely highly rated...

My son and I did the South Kaibab trail. Down 1.5 miles and up 1.5 miles. Brutal. It was 105 or so. Hardest hike I have ever done and it was just 3 miles

 

[hydro2.0]

Went to arches and Canyonlands over the Christmas holiday. Arches is beautiful and certainly worth going but, in my opinion, doesn’t even come close to Canyonlands. Absolutely spectacular and breathtaking.

These were the first two national parks I’ve visited but gotta be honest, I am hooked

 

[blackbones]

Did you hike needles district or just visit?

My wife and I camped on blm land in the area close to the Needles district entrance with epic views in every direction... We did the shorter easy trails inside of the park with total silence and we saw hardly anybody else there..

 

[blackbones]

Went to arches and Canyonlands over the Christmas holiday. Arches is beautiful and certainly worth going but, in my opinion, doesn’t even come close to Canyonlands. Absolutely spectacular and breathtaking.

These were the first two national parks I’ve visited but gotta be honest, I am hooked

I love the entire MOAB area for natural beauty...

 

[unipanther1999]

Of the dozen or so I've visited...

1. Rocky Mountain National Park: my favorite, never gets old
2. Virgin Islands National Park: it's most of the island of St. John. Beautiful beaches.
3. Grand Canyon: seeing it for the first time is indescribable.
4. Olympic: Mountains, rainforest and coastal areas all in one park.
5. Yellowstone: Must see, but always so busy.

Honorable Mention: Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It's out of the way, but breathtaking and not nearly as busy as the other area parks.

Others I've been to... Smokey, Grand Tetons, Badlands, Arches, Canyonlands, Great Sand Dunes.

Colorado National Monument really should be a National Park, it's fantastic. Devil's Tower is also a must.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

Badlands
Rocky Mountain
Smoky Mountain
Washington D.C.
Old Monster jungle gym set at Oleson Park in Fort Dodge


Yes I don't get out much........

 

[hawkeyetraveler]

My son and I did the South Kaibab trail. Down 1.5 miles and up 1.5 miles. Brutal. It was 105 or so. Hardest hike I have ever done and it was just 3 miles

Yeah when I was researching my trip (South Kaibob to North Kaibob and back) I quickly realized that anytime after April is no-go for my level of fitness. It’s ~45 miles with 11K+ feet of elevation gain over the entire trail. So I’m doing it over 4 days in winter, highs in the 50’s in the canyon and lows in the 20s on the rims. Hiking it in summer is for braver souls than me.

The only issues for me will be an uncertain level of snowpack on the north rim and some daily closures for construction which mean I have to start one of the days at 4am to clear that area. Well that and whether my 51 year old legs can hack the mileage.

 

[tarheelbybirth]

If you ever get the chance, hike through Joyce Kilmer memorial forest in western NC. Never logged old-growth forest with over 100 different species of trees with some pretty big specimens and some great views. They're not sequoias big but still pretty impressive.

 

[ISUBryceC]

I love the entire MOAB area for natural beauty...

I really liked MOAB, Arches, Canyonlands, and Bryce specifically. Zion was fine but it was REALLY packed with people when we were there.

If you’re out there check out Dead Horse State Park in Utah. Not a national park so it’s a lot more rugged but you can basically go anywhere you want in there.

Massive cliff faces with no railing though. I had like a 3 year old at the time and that was a bit unnerving with him.

 

[runkpanole]

Of those I’ve visited

1. Glacier
2. Rocky Mountain
3. Smokey Mountain
4. Mammoth Cave
5. Gateway

Good reminder that I need to get my son his 4th grade pass before the summer. Should be able to check Grand Canyon off in April.

 

[jellyfish10]

I really liked MOAB, Arches, Canyonlands, and Bryce specifically. Zion was fine but it was REALLY packed with people when we were there.

If you’re out there check out Dead Horse State Park in Utah. Not a national park so it’s a lot more rugged but you can basically go anywhere you want in there.

Massive cliff faces with no railing though. I had like a 3 year old at the time and that was a bit unnerving with him.

My brother and I had a similar experience at Zion until we got into the backcountry. We started our hike and the trail was busy…and hot. We started with our shirts off but as we climbed and wound our way around the mountain, it got cold and we were hiking in snow. We camped on the edge of a cliff, way too close in fact. The next morning we woke up and everything was frozen but the solitude was well worth it.

Had a similar experience at RMNP minus the weather.

Canyon lands was breathtaking.

My best experiences in National Parks have been backpacking and getting away from all the people.

Arkansas is underrated. Not national parks, but have had some amazing hike at Richland Creek, Ponca, and some gnarly kayaking on the Buffalo.

 

[BelemNole]

1. Yellowstone - I keep going back so it must be my favorite
2. Yosemite - amazing valley and sequoias, what more could you want?
3. Glacier - been too long since I've been back
4. Teton - doesn't look real
5. Redwood - Redwoods and the coast. Pretend you're in Return of the Jedi

 

[FSUTribe76]

My Top 10 Favorite NP and NM’s would probably fluctuate all over the place as it’s really just 1 then 2A through 2I. But today at this time I post it, I’d say:
1) Yellowstone
2) Grand Canyon - South Rim and Desert View
3) Virgin Islands
4) Big Bend
5) Canyonlands - Island in the Sky

the other five I’d probably rotate through include: Arches, Yosemite, Haleakala, Bryce and Dinosaur National Monument.

As far as most surprisingly good NP and NMs, I‘d go with:

1) Big Bend
2) White Sands
3) Badlands
4) Great Sand Dunes
5) Muir Woods National Monument

Terrible NP not worth going to more than once include:
1) Congaree
2) Guadalupe
3) Saguaro
4) Wind Cave
5) Mammoth Cave

And finally State Parks that are on par with National Parks and National Monuments are:
1) Niagara Falls State Park - NY
2) Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park - CA
3) Goblin Valley State Park - UT
4) Wai’ānapanapa State Park - HI
5) Grayton State Park - FL
6) Jockey’s Ridge State Park - NC
7) Bahia Honda State Park - FL
8) Valley of Fire State Park - NV
9) Weeki Wachee State Park - FL
10A) DuPont State Forest - NC
10B) Dead Horse Point State Park - UT
10C) Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park - UT

​

 

[InsaneHawkJJP]

My Top 10 Favorite NP and NM’s would probably fluctuate all over the place as it’s really just 1 then 2A through 2I. But today at this time I post it, I’d say:
1) Yellowstone
2) Grand Canyon - South Rim and Desert View
3) Virgin Islands
4) Big Bend
5) Canyonlands - Island in the Sky

the other five I’d probably rotate through include: Arches, Yosemite, Haleakala, Bryce and Dinosaur National Monument.

As far as most surprisingly good NP and NMs, I‘d go with:

1) Big Bend
2) White Sands
3) Badlands
4) Great Sand Dunes
5) Muir Woods National Monument

Terrible NP not worth going to more than once include:
1) Congaree
2) Guadalupe
3) Saguaro
4) Wind Cave
5) Mammoth Cave

And finally State Parks that are on par with National Parks and National Monuments are:
1) Niagara Falls State Park - NY
2) Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park - CA
3) Goblin Valley State Park - UT
4) Wai’ānapanapa State Park - HI
5) Grayton State Park - FL
6) Jockey’s Ridge State Park - NC
7) Bahia Honda State Park - FL
8) Valley of Fire State Park - NV
9) Weeki Wachee State Park - FL
10A) DuPont State Forest - NC
10B) Dead Horse Point State Park - UT
10C) Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park - UT

​

Big Sur is great! When we went last May, some of highway 1 was closed, so we couldn’t see it all, but what we did see was beautiful.

 

[blackbones]

My Top 10 Favorite NP and NM’s would probably fluctuate all over the place as it’s really just 1 then 2A through 2I. But today at this time I post it, I’d say:
1) Yellowstone
2) Grand Canyon - South Rim and Desert View
3) Virgin Islands
4) Big Bend
5) Canyonlands - Island in the Sky

the other five I’d probably rotate through include: Arches, Yosemite, Haleakala, Bryce and Dinosaur National Monument.

As far as most surprisingly good NP and NMs, I‘d go with:

1) Big Bend
2) White Sands
3) Badlands
4) Great Sand Dunes
5) Muir Woods National Monument

Terrible NP not worth going to more than once include:
1) Congaree
2) Guadalupe
3) Saguaro
4) Wind Cave
5) Mammoth Cave

And finally State Parks that are on par with National Parks and National Monuments are:
1) Niagara Falls State Park - NY
2) Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park - CA
3) Goblin Valley State Park - UT
4) Wai’ānapanapa State Park - HI
5) Grayton State Park - FL
6) Jockey’s Ridge State Park - NC
7) Bahia Honda State Park - FL
8) Valley of Fire State Park - NV
9) Weeki Wachee State Park - FL
10A) DuPont State Forest - NC
10B) Dead Horse Point State Park - UT
10C) Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park - UT

​

Nice list... Snow Canyon is another good Utah state park..

 

[Bonerfarts]

 

[stickman80]

Since this is HROT #1 is a no brainer.....Grand Tetons.....aka Large Teat.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Big Sur is great! When we went last May, some of highway 1 was closed, so we couldn’t see it all, but what we did see was beautiful.

All of CH1 is fantastic but the stretch from Carmel to Saint Babs is amazing. It definitely stinks when one of the not so infrequent road closures occurs because it is a huge pain to reroute around it.

 

[FSUTribe76]

I should have added the followingy, because not all of the best spots are in “White Man’s Land”, there’s a lot of still amazing vistas and museums in the hands of indigenous peoples.

My Top Ten Indigenous vistas and museums are:

1) Monument Valley, Antelope Canyon and Horseshoe Bend - Navajo Nation

2) Taos - Eight Northern Pueblos Nation

3) Grand Canyon West Rim - Hualapai Nation

4) Sunrise Park Resort - White Mountain Apache Nation
5) Absaroka Mountains, Wyoming Native American Byway and Boysen State Park - Wind River Nation

6) Havasu Falls - Havasupai Nation

7) Oconaluftee Visitor Center, Mingo Falls and Unto These Hills Amphitheater - Eastern Band of Cherokee Nation

8) Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum and Big Cypress Reserve - Florida Seminole Nation

9) Chief Mountain and Browning MT - Blackfeet Nation

10A) Everglades Safari Park, Miccosukee Indian Village and Tigertail Airboat Tours - Miccosukee Nation

10B) Laguna Pueblo - Nineteen Pueblos of New Mexico Nation

 

[lucas80]

My Top 10 Favorite NP and NM’s would probably fluctuate all over the place as it’s really just 1 then 2A through 2I. But today at this time I post it, I’d say:
1) Yellowstone
2) Grand Canyon - South Rim and Desert View
3) Virgin Islands
4) Big Bend
5) Canyonlands - Island in the Sky

the other five I’d probably rotate through include: Arches, Yosemite, Haleakala, Bryce and Dinosaur National Monument.

As far as most surprisingly good NP and NMs, I‘d go with:

1) Big Bend
2) White Sands
3) Badlands
4) Great Sand Dunes
5) Muir Woods National Monument

Terrible NP not worth going to more than once include:
1) Congaree
2) Guadalupe
3) Saguaro
4) Wind Cave
5) Mammoth Cave

And finally State Parks that are on par with National Parks and National Monuments are:
1) Niagara Falls State Park - NY
2) Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park - CA
3) Goblin Valley State Park - UT
4) Wai’ānapanapa State Park - HI
5) Grayton State Park - FL
6) Jockey’s Ridge State Park - NC
7) Bahia Honda State Park - FL
8) Valley of Fire State Park - NV
9) Weeki Wachee State Park - FL
10A) DuPont State Forest - NC
10B) Dead Horse Point State Park - UT
10C) Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park - UT

​

What was your beef with Mammoth Caves? It's an amazing set of caves. Too much white trash?
I had only seen Iowa caves before our trip, and to be in a cave like the Autobahn was beyond comparison to me.

 

[lucas80]

My brother and I had a similar experience at Zion until we got into the backcountry. We started our hike and the trail was busy…and hot. We started with our shirts off but as we climbed and wound our way around the mountain, it got cold and we were hiking in snow. We camped on the edge of a cliff, way too close in fact. The next morning we woke up and everything was frozen but the solitude was well worth it.

Had a similar experience at RMNP minus the weather.

Canyon lands was breathtaking.

My best experiences in National Parks have been backpacking and getting away from all the people.

Arkansas is underrated. Not national parks, but have had some amazing hike at Richland Creek, Ponca, and some gnarly kayaking on the Buffalo.

There is a reason they call Arkansas the natural state. Follow a line along and north of I-30 to Little Rock, then along and west of US 67 and it's a bounty of parks. There are some idyllic spots in the south, but very undeveloped and way off the beaten path.
Lots of hang gliding spots in Arkansas. I liked hiking along the trails at Nebo and Mt. Magazine and watching them take off on their flights.

 

[JRHawk2003]

I am going to give some love to our own Effigy Mounds. It's really a neat place with some great views.